So I am thinking of doing a novice friendly DS ride this Sunday. I will post a route later this week. But looking to depart the Leesburg area around 08:00-08:30. and breaking up around lunch time. Food may or may not be involved depending on everyone's schedule.

My intent is to show some more inexperienced than me (if that is possible) DS riders some friendly roads with which to practice.

Full disclosure upfront, I am not an adventure verteran or offroad savant. Just someone who has spent a decent amount of time riding some of the unpaved Virginia and wants to help other folks gain some confidence.

Hey Marc, I'd love to go, but I'll be headed out to the Maryland RTE on Sunday.

Would you by any chance have the route you're planning on riding on GPS? If so, I'd love to get the tracks for future use.

Thanks!

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Just a heads up if your route, or anyone elses, includes Indian Hollow Road in Bentonville...They took a perfectly good asphalt road and tar and chipped it. ()
It's not bad but it's nothing like the other group encountered two weekends ago. There is fine gravel in between the tire tracks that wont get mashed in or thrown off the roadway anytime soon.

Tis the season for the tar and chip. Man I love the grip it gives in the middle, but the beginning and end of life is treacherous.
Harris Hollow/Gid Brown Hollow just got some fresh chip patches as well.

Hey Marc, I'd love to go, but I'll be headed out to the Maryland RTE on Sunday.

Would you by any chance have the route you're planning on riding on GPS? If so, I'd love to get the tracks for future use.

Thanks!

Sorry, other than the layman's GPS on my phone, I don't have a GPS. ITs on my list of things to get and then learn how to use. I also suck at making maps online and then sharing them out. I start building them on Bing maps and it freeszes up after I put too many way points on. So I only get half way through my route. Again, too stupid to operate.

Enjoy the RTE. I know we are also going to lose out to some folks who are attending eh Square Route Rally. But since this ride is more novice focused, I imagine a lot of the more experienced riders may not come out.

As an alternative to the noob friendly ride, I'm thinking about heading up to Sleepy Creek again this weekend to bounce off some rocks, logs, and trees, and work on my "picking up the bike" strength. Knobby tires highly recommended. I've done some of it on 705s in the past, but it was, um, interesting in the mud. Skid plate also recommended, some of the rocks are big and pointy, and I have a dent in my frame to prove it.

Looking at Sunday. With the rains today, it will be too swampy on Saturday.

What to expect for trails, um, rocky, muddy, poorly maintained, double track. I'm planning on hitting a few that I haven't ridden before, but if it's like the rest of the area...

Well, 628 and 629 are a hoot. 629 was especially fun because I rode through a small-ish lake on the road Hit it at about 20mph and had water come up OVER my head ... guess the puddle was deeper than I thought.